On Christmas Eve most of the Pacific Northwest is still paralyzed by the snow and ice that started last week, but there have been amazing tales of human compassion toward those who cannot manage the storm as well as others. In a change of pace for our blog, we will look at a few stories around the area of people getting out and making a difference.
The Oregonian wrote about a volunteer with the Meals on Wheels program, who on Tuesday, was still unable to deliver food due to nearly undrivable road conditions:
And that is where (Cynthia) Stowell arrived at 11 a.m. sharp to deliver meals to about a dozen residents in four low-income apartment buildings.
Her husband, John Miller, was on a snow day from his job as a system information specialist at Metro and came along to help, muscling an unwieldy cart carrying two large insulated boxes -- one for hot plates, the other for drinks and oranges -- over icy ruts and snowbanks.
Other volunteers loaded boxes into SUVs for slippery drives to outer neighborhoods.
Stowell, a photographer and writer, signed on with Meals-On-Wheels after their son began his freshman year at Portland State University this fall.
"Ever since I started this, I've had good weather," Stowell said as she stepped gingerly over a ridge of gray snow. "I thought, 'What will I do if it snows?' Naw, that's not going to happen."
Down in Medford, they are planning a huge community dinner- that is free to everyone. The Mobile Auto Detail Charity Events Group is hosting the first ever "Feed the Valley" event. They are still looking for donations of food, but are inviting everyone who wants to spend Christmas with their neighbors. The Mail Tribune has more:
"We want anyone who needs something like this to come enjoy themselves and have a nice dinner with the community.""We want anyone who needs something like this to come enjoy themselves and have a nice dinner with the community."And if you were stuck in an airport, bus station, or train station waiting and hoping to make it home before Christmas, you might have been the recipient of anonymous donors, who send over everything from pillows to meals for the thousands of stranded travelers. The Salt Lake Tribune has more:With some of its founders knowing how it feels to be down and out during the holiday season, Mobile Auto Detail Charity Events will put on its first-ever Christmas dinner Thursday.
Dubbed "Feed the Valley," the event, to be held from 3 to 8 p.m. at Club Oxygen in downtown Medford, is in need of residents willing to give and receive.
Donations of hams, turkeys and toys would ease coordinators' minds about having enough food to serve and toys to hand out.
For those on the receiving end, a holiday meal will be ready for hundreds of residents along with a free visit and photo with Santa, toys for kids and a chance to make gingerbread houses.
"This is open to all residents of Southern Oregon and college kids who can't make it home for the holidays or just basically anyone who needs it," said Travis Sprague, Mobile Auto Detail Charity Events president.
What: "Feed the Valley" Christmas feast
When: 3 to 8 p.m. Christmas Day
Where: Club Oxygen, 333 E. Main St., Medford
Admission: Free to anyone who wants to share Christmas with the community
To make donations: Contact Travis Sprague at 840-6123 or e-mail him at mobileautodetailcharityevents@gmail.com
Here are some other places in Oregon that could use help with food donations:Since the media coverage, the five-dayers said an anonymous donor paid for 20 rooms at a motel for Sunday night, hamburgers and french fries were donated, and several people have brought toys, children's books and food.
When Kathryn Jensen learned there were soldiers stranded, she took her laptop to the terminal and started buying plane tickets with the extra money she had in Let's Fly Em Home. The charity buys airfare for needy soldiers.
The Oregon Food Bank is reporting record requests for emergency food boxes. They take fresh, canned, dehydrated, or frozen foods.Everyone at Pacific Food Distributors wish you and your family a happy, safe holiday season.
The Union Gospel Mission of Portland takes both money and food donations to provide food to the homeless.
Metro's Fork It Over program helps provide meals while reducing restaurant waste in Portland.
The Sunshine Division will help pack and distribute over 4,000 food boxes this holiday season.
